This holiday cheer infused vodka was a spur of the moment thing. I was reading about using pine needles and pine cones in cooking and thought that something holiday cocktail related might be a very good idea indeed.
If you make this, please ensure that you are using pine from an unsprayed tree and one that is not along the roadside where it will have been absorbing car emissions.
This makes 750 ml of flavored vodka, about the same amount as a bottle of wine.
1 generous sprig of pine, well washed and dried
2 tsps juniper berries, lightly crushed
Peel from one orange
Peel from one lemon
1 stick of cinnamon
750 ml bottle of your favorite vodka
Sterilize an old wine bottle.
Add all of the dry ingredients to the bottle. Were I to make this again, I would add the cinnamon stick at the end, tied to a string, so that I could remove it as soon as the cinnamon flavor got to the level where I wanted it. I did not do this and, a week in, I had to transfer everything to another bottle, removing the cinnamon, which was strong enough for my taste already.
Add the vodka to the bottle and, using an air tight stopper, seal it. Better yet, use a wine bottle that came with a screw top. Place in a dark cupboard, checking every couple of weeks in case the cinnamon taste gets too strong or the pine resin undertones of whatever pine you added become too much for your palate. At this time remove the ingredient in question and leave the rest to infuse until the holiday season.
I plan on using this in vodka tonics, decorated with a sprig of rosemary and a few cranberries on a pick, added to some sparkling cider, or in a more involved cocktail consisting of equal amounts of this vodka and apple Schnapps, finished with a generous glug of Prosecco. It would be good to add a kick to both hot cider or mulled wine as well.
I made a slightly embellished vodka-tonic with it in late October as a test run, with sliced summer peaches from the freezer instead of ice cubes. It was amazingly good and I called it the Autumn Flame because it is a beautiful cocktail, as well as a tasty one.
Update:
Since then, I have used it in a Holiday Cheer Cocktail